A Rose By Any Other Name (Is Less Than Ideal)
by greenbirdcries
Summary: When Auror Malfoy visits Hogwarts for a routine demonstration for Potter's DADA class, he expects it to be a little uncomfortable. It ends up being more than a little uncomfortable, especially when he wakes up in a certain professor's body.


I'm a long time reader of Drarry, and I just had to give it a try for myself. This story will be 10 chapters in total, and full of angst, humor, and a little bit of romance. I hope you enjoy

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None of this would have happened if he had not stolen Harry Potter's best friend. Well, perhaps steal was too strong of word. After all, Ronald Weasley was just as capable of picking his friends as any other wizard of his caliber. Whether this was an insult was really to be determined by the interpreter. And really, it could hardly be called Draco's fault in any case. He didn't pick his Auror partner, and he certainly did not agree to becoming an unofficially adopted member of the Granger-Weasley family.

The whole thing was an absolute mess, and Draco was certain that if they went back far enough it was undoubtedly Potter's fault. It was over five years ago now that he had resigned from his position as Head Auror (a undeserved title to be sure), broke up with his fiance, and moved back to Hogwarts to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. It made quite a splash when it hit the front page of the Daily Prophet. The whole affair was crystal clear in Draco's memory, if only because it had affected his own life so much. And was just the way things were, wasn't it? It seemed that it could always be traced back to Potter one way or another.

It just so happened that after Potter abruptly left his position, Draco was joining the Auror ranks. Ron Weasley happened to be the only Auror in need of a partner. After a few stilted conversations, and few close calls in the field, they had managed to band together. Their tentative friendship had been solidified when Ron found out that Draco was planning on spending Christmas alone, and greatly disturbed by the thought, he had invited Draco to spend Christmas at the Burrow. He had been unable to shake off the Weasleys' care since then. He was still deciding whether this was a good thing or not.

This debate continued the morning that he and Ron Apparated to Hogwarts to give a demonstration and brief lecture for the more advanced DADA classes. Draco had managed to avoid Hogwarts since he had been a student. He had also been particularly fortunate when it came to avoiding Potter. Considering that Ron and Hermione were both his and Potter's best friends, it was amazing that they ran into each other as infrequently as they did. It must have been the one thing that they mutually agreed upon, however Draco could not be certain of this since he had been too busy avoiding Potter to discuss it with him.

Little seemed to have changed in the halls and corridors, and even most of the professors were the same although it had been over thirteen years since his time at Hogwarts. For a moment he wondered if this is how his own father had felt when he visited Hogwarts as an adult before he banished the thought from his mind.

"We're running late," Ron said to Draco as they walked down the corridor. "I'm sure he's already started class by now."

"A dramatic entrance," Draco commented. "How passé."

"I don't know what that means, and I don't really care," Ron snorted. He gave a firm rap to a thick wooden door before opening it. Inside, a room full of curious faces peered out at them. Suddenly, Draco's sight of the class was obstructed by the face of Professor Potter who stood grinning in the doorway. His hair was as wild as ever, and his skin was a healthy brown. A scar cut across his nose and his face, but it simply seemed to make his smile all the sincere. He gave a Ron a quick embrace, before greeting Draco with a warm handshake. It was then that Draco realized that Potter was talking, maybe even to him. He had to stare at him for a moment before his hearing returned in a dull rush.

Weird.

"-so excited that you could both join us."

He clapped his hands together, and before Draco knew what was happening, the entire class had all joined in.

"We haven't done anything yet," Draco said. Potter threw back his head and laughed like this was the funniest thing he had ever heard and clapped him on the back.

"We've been going over some stronger defensive spells the past week," Potter said, seeming to address Ron and Draco as well as the class. "I know a few of you have asked me "why focus on stronger defenses? why not focus on stronger attacks?" Well, I've brought in Aurors Weasley and Malfoy to answer those very questions."

Ron nodded. "Hi, everyone. I'm sure most of you heard the saying that the best defense is a good offense. This might be the case when it comes to Quidditch, but it is certainly not the case when it comes to spellwork. For instance," he cast a Bat-Bogey hex at Draco, who quickly deflected it. Thanks to Ginny, Draco had had quite a bit of practice deflecting that one. "It doesn't really matter what the exact spell was. What mattered is that Dra- er, Auror Malfoy was able to block it. You see?"

Draco nodded. "Casting offensive spells is about _opportunity_. You have to wait for your opponent to make a mistake. Defensive spells are about common sense, something I hope that a fifth year DADA class is not lacking in." He looked each one of them over before continuing. "We're going to go through a few more examples. If you have any questions, please refrain from asking them until after we have stopped dueling for your safety and for ours."

They went through several rounds of one attacking and the other blocking, each time pointing out a different weakness in both the attack and the defense.

"Use your opponent's weaknesses against them. Incorporate them into your defense," Draco instructed, blocking three spells in succession before hitting Ron with a nonverbal spell that sent him flying back.

Harry helped Ron off the floor, looking positively jovial. "Excellent!" He cried. "See, _this_ is what I mean! The line between defense and offense is not as thick as you might think!"

"Let's trade out," Ron said. "It'll be easier for me to explain everything if I can actually see what's happening."

Deciding that this was far, Draco agreed that Ron should bow out so that Potter would take his place. Ron's pride was easily wounded, and Draco had learned long ago that it was better to avoid it altogether than to put up with a sulky partner for days on end.

When Draco turned to look at Harry, wand at the ready, he was taken aback by what he saw. The excited professor from a moment ago had been replaced by someone else entirely. His mouth was flat, green eyes bright and determined. His wand was held in a comfortable grip that belied the speed and accuracy Draco knew that hand to be capable. This was the war hero, the legend who had defeated one of the darkest wizards twice before his eighteenth birthday. This was the man who had cut him open so many years ago with a single spell. Potter's expression was impenetrable, but Draco wondered if he was remembering that day too.

Without word or warning, Harry struck, shouting "Stupefy!"

So that's how it was going to be then. Draco ducked and sent a an attack of his own.

"Relashio!"

"Expelliarmus!"

At first, the spells swapped back and forth were at an appropriate level for fifth year students. That is to say that the spells that both Draco and Harry used had been covered in the curriculum at some point, but at a certain point, things began to get out of hand. Spells were flying back and forth at such as speed that Draco could barely keep track of what he was blocking and what he saying. There were flashes of light of all sorts of colors, but instead of getting louder, their duel became deathly quiet as they stopped wasting their breath on shouting and concentrated on wordless magic.

Ron had long since given up on describing what was happening to the students, instead he was just ensuring that no wayward spells hit the students.

And then, in a moment of pure chaos, with multiple curses flying his way, Potter smiled.

And _this_ , this is why Potter brought them here in the first place. Not because he needed help explaining a basic concept to his students, not because he wanted his students to meet two Aurors still in the field. No, he had brought them here, brought _Draco_ here, because he missed the fight. And there was no one better than Draco Lucius Malfoy at getting Harry James Potter involved in a fight. But he needed to put an end to this, and he needed to end it now. He could already feel that old feeling creep over him: the need to beat Potter, no matter what the cost. He was past that now. They didn't have to be friends, but they were no longer rivals, not to mention both were full fledged adults. He wanted to keep going. He wanted to push Potter, wanted him to be the one to break first.

Almost in slow motion, he looked at Potter again and flicked his wand, wordlessly sending another spell. As if he was his reflection, Potter flicked his wand at the exact same time. For a split second, Draco felt with certainty that the spells would hit and disarm each other. Then he was hit, and he did not feel anything else.

He awoke to a pounding head and a keen sense that he was in the Hospital Wing. The air had always tasted odd here. Slowly he cracked open one eye and immediately regretted it. The room was bright and spinning and ... blurry? He squinted, waiting for his vision to clear. It didn't.

He reached up and rubbed his eyes. When he opened his eyes for the second time, his vision was no better off. Mostly he could just see colors, and the vague outline of shapes. What had Potter done to him? He looked down at the bed which was covered in the crisp sheets that were a hallmark feature of the Hospital Wing experience. Other than his vision seemed to be fine. He flexed his arms and legs experimentally and that was when he noticed it.

His arms were a warm, dark complexion instead of his own fair one. The forearms were muscular and shorter than Draco's own. What in Merlin's name was happening?

"Madam Pomfrey, he's awake!" Ron shouted.

There were footsteps moving in his direction. "Blimey, mate. The two of you scared me. I should have known better than agree to let you duel together," he sighed as though he were not the one to suggest it. "You always did manage to create a mess together. He's still out cold, you know."

There was shuffling, and then Draco saw a Madam Pomfrey shaped blob. "How are you doing, Harry? Oh, I'm sure you want your glasses." He felt to foreign tips of metal slide across the tops of his ears. Suddenly he could see again. Madam Pomfrey was bent over, almost directly in Draco's face, and Ron was perched on the end of the bed.

"What did you call me?" Draco rasped at Madam Pomfrey. His voice felt unnaturally deep.

"Are you alright, Harry?" Ron asked, looking worried. "I let Hermione know what happened, and she's on her way over now. You and Draco are both going to get an earful I bet." He thought for a moment. "Actually, I probably will too," he added gloomily.

Oh no. No, no, no. He was not stuck in the body of Harry Potter. This was not happening. He could barely stand to be in Potter's presence for five minutes, and now he was literally in his body. Dear Merlin, what would his mother say?

"I'm not Harry," Draco said, his throat still scratchy. "I'm Draco."

"What?!" Ron said.

Madam Pomfrey clucked. "Like hell you are. I think you must have hit your head harder than I realized."

"I am," Draco insisted.

"Harry, I think you're confused, mate. Draco's over in that bed," Ron pointed to a bed on the other end of the hospital. Clearly Pomfrey had been worried about a round two.

Wait. If he was in Potter's body, did that mean that Potter was in his? He wasn't sure which was worse: that no one was currently in Draco's body, and he'd somehow managed to kill Potter, or that Potter was in Draco's body just like he was in his, and he was going to wake up at some point. Was there nothing that this man could avoid getting involved in?

Draco struggled to get out bed, but Ron and Pomfrey gently held him down. "No, you don't understand! I am Draco Lucius Malfoy, and if I'm not mistaken the real Harry is lying over there _in my body_. Let. Me. Up."

They stared at him in disbelief. Draco wasn't exactly sure why he should be the one to convince them that this was really happening. After all, he would appreciate a little confirmation himself.

Just then he heard a shifting sound from the other side of the room, followed first by a yawn, a brief silence, and then:

"What the FUCK?"

"Speak of the devil," Draco said with a wave of his newly acquired sausage fingers.

Pomfrey tutted again. "Well I do believe that answers any confusion I had about that. Now I want both of you boys to explain to me what exactly you did. I can only hope that we can get your switched back."

There was a _tap, tap tap_ sound from outside the wing that quickly increased in volume. Hermione Granger burst into the room, hair bushier than ever. "I came as soon as I heard! Are they both ok?"

"In a manner of speaking," Madam Pomfrey replied looking quizzically at Draco as though he would be able to explain how this happened. He was a little fuzzy on the details, but he was certain of one thing: This all could be traced back to Harry Potter.

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Thanks for reading! Reviews are always appreciated!


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